Commercial Agriculture Blogs

Looking out across Central Illinois, you will see open fields stretching for miles with few breaks in between fields. It may even be difficult to tell where one field ends and another begins. This is not what farmland in Illinois always looked like, though. Our agricultural landscape...

With recent dust storms sweeping across the state, Illinois farmers are again coming under scrutiny for the agricultural practices that can contribute to these storms.  With high winds, dry conditions,...

Farmers in Bureau and Marshall Counties are turning to an innovative conservation practice that’s not only helping the environment — but also potentially boosting their bottom line.  Constructed wetlands, designed to treat water from subsurface tile drainage, are gaining traction as a way to...

Looking for financial help to adopt conservation practices on your farm?  A new online tool is making it easier than ever for Illinois growers to connect with cost-share programs tailored to their operation.  Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership (ISAP)’s...

With harvest wrapped up across most of Illinois, many growers are starting to consider fall nitrogen fertilizer applications.  Fall applied nitrogen is fairly common throughout Illinois as ammonia is typically cheaper in the fall and there is less of a time crunch than spring applied N, but...

Harvest is well underway across the state, with record yields projected for both corn and soybean.  Many farmers are also gearing up to plant their winter cover crops.  In recent...

Choosing the right cover crop can be a daunting task, whether it is the first time you’re planting a cover crop or you're deciding to switch to something new.  With countless options and complex factors to consider, it can be difficult to determine which is the best cover crop for your...

In recent years, cover crops have gained popularity as a sustainable agricultural practice that farmers can implement to improve the health and functioning of their soils. Cover crops are not a new concept, though.  They used to be a normal part of our agricultural systems.  It is...

Driving through the country this time of year, you’re likely to see two things: corn and soybeans.  In 2023, 11.2 million acres of land in Illinois were planted in corn and nearly 10.4 million acres in soybeans.  These two crops make up the vast majority of our agricultural production in...

Pesticides are essential for commercial growers to control weeds, insects, and disease, and are an integral part of an integrated weed management (IWM)...